Portable devices capable of audio streaming to headsets or earphones via a wireless link are becoming increasingly popular. An example of such a device is an audio player where the audio signal is transmitted over the air to a Bluetooth headset, thus avoiding the hassles of cable tangling or of the cable getting entwined with an object associated with a cable connection between the audio player and the headset.
Hearing aids (sometimes also referred to as hearing prostheses or hearing instruments) are small devices worn behind the ear or in the ear. They comprise one or more microphones, a processor, an amplifier and a miniature loudspeaker, commonly referred to as a receiver. The basic function of a hearing aid is the processing and the amplification of the acoustic signal arriving at the microphone(s) in order to compensate the hearing loss of the user.
Cochlear implants comprise one or more microphones, a processor, an amplifier and an output electrode which stimulates the nerve cells in the cochlear in order to compensate at least partially the hearing loss of a user.
The settings of a hearing aid or a cochlear implant may be modified by the user via a remote control unit.
In addition to the important basic functionalities users of hearing devices such as hearing aids or cochlear implants would also like to utilise audio streaming from an audio device as an alternative signal source. This has become possible with the availability of products like Phonak's iCom communication interface, Oticon's ConnectLine of devices, Siemens Tek, and Widex' DEX listening devices. Users of hearing devices such as hearing aids commonly also employ remote control units like for instance Phonak's PilotOne or Siemens' ProPocket. In order to minimise the number of devices that a hearing aid or cochlear implant user needs to carry around combined solutions like for example Oticon's Streamer providing both wireless audio streaming and remote control functionality within a single device have been developed.
In such a multifunction device the power consumption for wireless audio streaming is many times greater than that of the embedded remote control unit. The battery powering the device can typically only support wireless audio streaming for a few hours (e.g. 4 to 6). However, a user of a hearing aid or cochlear implant is accustomed to a remote control unit which can be operated continuously for many weeks employing the same battery. This leads to the problem that the battery of such a multifunction device is usually depleted after only a few hours of wireless audio streaming operation and thus also the remote control unit powered by the same battery can no longer be used until the battery has either been recharged or replaced by a new one. This is experienced as a great disadvantage of such multifunction devices by their users, since typically they are quite critically dependent on the remote control functionality to be operative in order for example to adjust the volume, switch to a different hearing program, select different settings or activate specific functions of the hearing device. On the other hand, not being able to continue wireless audio streaming when the battery is drained will normally be of less concern to the user.